Substantiated cases of abuse or neglect in Kentucky nursing homes is up from 18 percent last year to 28 percent this year.

A report by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services says that 2,090 abuse investigations were conducted at Kentucky nursing homes and it was determined that abuse or neglect probably happened in 583 of those cases. Last year there were about the same number of investigations and 368 of those investigations found that abuse or neglect likely occurred.

This increase in substantiated cases of nursing home abuse could be a step in the right direction, however, since it also shows the renewed effort Kentucky has placed on rooting out abuse and neglect in its nursing homes. These more thorough investigations have been spurred by Gov. Steve Beshear’s recommendations for nursing home reform.

The Kentucky newspaper the Herald-Leader has been vital in this increased effort toward fighting nursing home abuse by publishing a series of articles in 2010 that called to light the problem of abuse and neglect in nursing homes across Kentucky.

We also encourage you to contact a nursing home abuse attorney if you know of a loved one being neglected or otherwise abused in a nursing home.